Granny’s Star & Cathedral Beads Quilts

Yes, it HAS been a while since I last posted to my blog! Life has been great and I have been quilting and teaching up a storm!

I have been quilting some wonderful customer quilts the last few months and here are two of them!

First is the Granny’s Star quilt, pieced by the Evergreen Quilt Guild in Kent, WA. The pattern is from the July / August 2009, Fons & Porter Love of Quilting magazine. (For Love of Quilting back issues Click Here)

This is the Evergreen Piecemakers 2024 Raffle Quilt.

This quilt is all custom quilted with a variety of techniques. I quilted feathers in the borders (which were 10 inches wide!), circles in the sashing and ribbon stipple in the block background and continuous curves in the piecing in the block.

Click on any photo for a larger view.

This is a view of the whole quilt, which measures 78 x 95 inches. The pattern also includes some Yo-Yo’s appliqued on the borders. The batting is Soft & Bright and I used both silver and white high sheen polyester thread.

This view shows the feather quilting in the borders.

This view is of the center border and blocks.

I can’t wait to see the finished quilt with the binding and the Yo-Yo’s appliqued in place. I’ll try to get a photo of the finished quit and post it soon!

Here is a totally different quilt from Judie T. It is called Cathedral Beads. It is a free online pattern – For a link to this pattern, Click Here

This quilt was 84 x 94 inches and was perfectly pieced!! The fabrics were “happy fabrics” with lots of color, sparkle and just way to much fun to look at!!

Because of the happy fabrics, I used a combination of ribbon stipple, wavy lines and starburst patterns for the quilting. The batting is Warm & White and I used a light green-ish variegated high sheen poly thread and white high sheen poly thread.

Here is a view of the whole quilt.

When I put the quilt on my quilting machine, I loaded it “horizontally” like it is hanging above, so that I would quilt across it without a lot of starting and stopping. The photo below shows the details of the quilting. There are wavy lines in the sashing and star bursts in the large pieced blocks.

This photo shows the border and the quilting in the side triangles.

Here is how the quilting looks when the quilt is vertical.

Last but not least, here is a photo of the back of the quilt. The texture from the quilting was AMAZING!

When Judie came to pick up her quilt she was so excited!! She couldn’t believe how nice the quilting was and how it made her quilt sparkle!!

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Quilted Pouches – V1

Lately I have been fascinated with making pouches! In particular quilted pouches.

I love working on pouches because they are small – a lot smaller than a queen size quit – they are relatively quick, there is a lot of creativity and they are functional!

Here are some pouches I have made over the last year or so –
Click on any photo for a larger view and slide show.

These pouches were SO MUCH FUN to make, even though I quilted them on my home sewing machine – either free motion or with a walking foot. But, I knew there was a way to quilt them on a longarm machine!

You could put a piece of “backing fabric” on the machine and quilt up a bunch of fabric and then cut the quilted fabric to size. But …, when you are sewing up the seams on the pouch, the seams can get VERY bulky and it will make your stitching a bit harder (ask me how I know this!)

By pre-cutting both the pouch fabric and the batting, will make the sewing up of your pouch a LOT easier!

Here is a (hopefully) brief tutorial on how you can quilt the “pouch pieces” on your longarm, using extra backing fabric from a quilt that is already on the machine!

I was working on a quilt and it had really nice Americana fabric on the back. Since this was a quilt for an upcoming class, I had a LOT of extra backing fabric extending from the sides and the bottom of the quilt while the quilt was on the quilting machine. I knew that fabric would make a GREAT pouch or two. Here is what I did.

VERSION 1 – THE BACKING FABRIC WILL BECOME THE FRONT OF THE POUCH

After the quilt was quilted (and the quilt was still on the machine), I determined how much extra backing fabric I had to work with, then cut some batting (I used Warm company, 80/20) to 1 inch less than the size I needed for my finished pouch pieces. I placed the batting pieces on the extended backing fabric having at least 1 or more inches between the batting pieces and used a small “shot” of temporary basting spray to hold my batting in place. When the batting was in place, I quilted it.

The first photo below show the batting cut for a larger pouch AND a small pouch, in position for quilting, on the left edge of the backing fabric. The second photo shows the quilting. The third and fourth photos show the batting placement and quilting on the right edge of the quilt backing.

For a Cutting Chart of Pouch Sizes Click Here

Click on the photos for a larger view and slide show.

If you would like to make a “boxed bottom” pouch, you can cut your batting that way, too. The photos below show a large and small pouch pieces, in position, ready for quilting on both the left and right edges of the backing fabric.

Once the batting pieces are all quilted, remove the quilt, trim it, and then cut apart the pouch pieces leaving a 1/2 inch “border” around all the edges of the batting. This 1/2 in area will be the seam allowances when you are sewing your pouch!

You could start sewing your pouch together right now, but, I like to take one more step, especially with the “batting only” version.

Take some lightweight fusible interfacing (it doesn’t matter what kind) and cut it into 1 inch strips. Fuse these strips to the edges of the backing / batting pieces. The interfacing will hold the edges of the batting when you are sewing, which will make your life so much easier. Do this on ALL the edges of the pouch pieces.

The first photo below shows the strips of interfacing in position before fusing. The second photo is a close up after being fused.

Here are my pouch pieces all quilted, edges fused and ready to be made into a real pouch.

But wait, there’s more! There is WAY too much “open” space on the front of these pieces. So, I found an online applique alphabet and did some simple applique to make –

And here are the finished pouches!

There are more versions of the quilted pouches, but that will have to wait for another day.

Here are some resources for the instructions on making the pouches –

For my favorite way of making a zippered pouch Click Here

For another way to make a zippered pouch and to finish the inside Click Here

Here is information on an acrylic template to make boxed pouch bottoms Click Here Note – I do have this template and use it.

There are MANY, MANY tutorials, blog post and videos on how to make pouches. Do an internet search and find one that YOU like!

Hopefully you will be able to make these cute, fun and functional pouches with your “longarm leftovers!”

Quilted Pouches – Version 2 will be posted soon!

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Once Upon a Time

My, oh my, does the time fly! It has been a busy year and I realized that I haven’t posted to my blog for a LONG while! So, today is the day!

I do a TON of stuff – videos, patterns, online classes, in-person classes, etc. – which is all quilting related and I do quilt on real quilts from time to time! The past few months I have been working on some AMAZING quilts and now I want to show you some of them.

This first quilt I am going to highlight is a quilt I made for my Granddaughter Maddie Tong. As with each quilt, there is a story!

This quilt was made from a kit that I found (on a great sale) while visiting with my sister in Illinois. We went “shop hopping” in her area and I found the kit.

Click on any image for a larger view.

I did a little research and this was offered in 2018 by Moda. I purchased the kit in late 2019, pieced it 2021 and finally quilted it earlier this year, 2022.

The quilt is WAY too cute, WAY too much fun to piece and WAY, WAY too much fun to quilt!

Here is the finished quilt! It is a larger twin size.

Here are some of the quilting details –

I quilted a feather cable in the outer borders and a combination of continuous curves, ribbon stipple, swirls and other fill in patterns to complete the quilting, The batting is Warm Company, Soft & Bright and I used an assortment of Signature 100% cotton, machine quilting threads.

For the center Castle block I did straight lines (free hand), wavy cross hatching, continuous curve, landscape stipple and swirls in the hearts.

Here is the back of the quilt and you can see a lot of the quilting detail even though the backing fabric is a fairly busy print

And of course, here is one HAPPY Granddaughter!!

I know she will use and enjoy this quilt for many, many years!

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New Year, New Quilts for 2022!

Oh my goodness! It has been a while since I last posted on my blog!!! Life has been busy and I finally have some time to catch up on things, including blog posts!

I actually have been working on some customer quilts and here are some photos of my most recent quilt.

This quilt was made by Cynthia H for her granddaughter. She did a great job with the piecing and we decided on free hand feathers and swirls for the quilting.

The quilt is 51 x 62 inches, it has Soft & Bright batting and I used Signature, Golden Harvest variegated cotton thread for the quilting. The backing is a very plush Minkee!

Click on the photos for a slideshow and a larger view.

Thank you Cynthia for letting me work on your quilt. I know your grand daughter will love it!

PS – I will be adding more quilt photos soon!

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Hawaiian Gnomes!

I just finished quilting this too stinkin’ cute, Hawaiian Gnome quilt for my customer. The pattern is based on the pattern, A Tale of Two Gnomes, by Cotton Street Commons. As you can see, my customer used Hawaiian prints for the Gnome hats and switched the pine trees from the original pattern to coconut trees to continue the island “vibe.”

Click on any photo for a larger view

The quilt is 59 x 70 inches. I used assorted high sheen poly threads and Warm & White batting.

My customer made this quilt for her nephew and his family who live in Hawaii. The quilt will be hand delivered when a friend of my customer visits Hawaii in a few weeks.

Here are some photos of the blocks. The blocks are a combination of piecing and hand applique.

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There was a fair amount of border area so I kept the quilting simple and did wavy lines to represent water. Where the block borders “overlapped” I also overlapped the horizontal and vertical wavy lines. These overlapping lines look like “fish nets” which, IMHO, enhances the island vibe!

My customer has picked up the quilt and LOVES it!!! She can’t wait for her nephew and his family to see it!

This quilt was WAY too much fun!!!

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New Year, New Quilts!

My oh my!! I don’t believe it has been six months since I have posted to my blog! Where does the time go? These last few months HAVE been busy. Even though I have been somewhat housebound – thank you Mr. Covid – there is still a LOT of quilting to do, patterns to create, instructions to be written, samples to be made, etc., etc.

On New Year’s Day 2021, I hosted my annual Mystery Quilt Along class on the Longarm Classroom website. This year, the quilt was “Winter Stars” For more details on this quilt and online class Click Here 

Click on the photos for a larger view.

The quilting, which was done with contrasting thread, was fairly simple feathers, but when they feathers “came together” they formed some secondary patterns. 

       

When the dust settled from the Mystery Quilt Along, I began working on some customer quilts. 

This quilt, Prairie Points and Pinwheels, 37 x 44 inches, was impeccably pieced by Connie M, and it is FUN to quilt! 

I quilted a feather border and had the feathers dip in between the Prairie Points. The body of the quilt is quilted with an all over, free hand feathers and swirls pattern. Click on the photos for a larger view. 

   

And today, I finished this quilt, 56 x 73 inches, for Shirley R. Again, an impeccably pieced quilt! This is the Boomerang Quilt pattern. You can view the pattern details by Clicking Here Click on the photos for a closer view

     

The quilting is all free hand with the matchstick quilting in the main part of the blocks and a diamond “spiral” in the smaller part of the blocks. The quilting was going along smoothly with no problems. Then, when I was finished and turned the quilt over, Oh NO!!!! I had the dreaded “big loops” on the back of the quilt. This has not happened to me for a LONG time!!! It started from when I put the last bobbin in the quilt. The quilting goddess is keeping me VERY humble! 

So I took the quilt off the machine, took out all the bad stitching, put the quilt back on the machine and re-quilted the area. All the time checking the back for the big loops. Thankfully, the big loops disappeared and the back now looks wonderful. Check out the photos below. 

Here are the dreaded big loops!

 

And here is the back of the finished quilt. I LOVE the texture on the back! You can’t even tell where I took out the stitches! 

I am going to believe that my “big quilting mistake” of the year is now over and done with, and that all my quilting in the rest of the year will be problem free! 

Now, on to the next quilt! 

 

 

 

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Snowflakes and Feathers

It has been a wild last few weeks! It seems like the more I stay home, the busier I become! Of course, I’m not cleaning the house or anything like that. I have been sewing, quilting, knitting and creating many new things!

I just finished this quilt for a customer, and I can’t tell you how much fun I had quilting it!!

The pattern is Snowflake, by Modern Hand Crafts. (For details on the pattern Click Here) and it was perfectly pieced.

Click on any photo for a larger view

This quilt is 60 x 72 inches. I quilted swirls in the background with silver high sheen poly thread. The snowflake has a combination of feathered wreaths and feather.

Here is a close look of the snowflake.

And here is a closer view of the “middle” of the quilt.

We can’t forget the back of the quilt.

This is a spectacular quilt and I love the fabric that my customer used!

Here is one more quilt I recently finished. This is a quilt my sister pieced a while ago and she wanted to gift it to a friend. She sent it to me and I went a little crazy with feathers! Which was totally appropriate for this quilt. All the feathers are free hand and I did have to make some (many) registration lines for the outer feather borders.

Click on any photo for a larger view

I can’t remember the exact size of this quilt, but it was about a Queen Size. My sister did an excellent job with the piecing!

Here is a corner of the quilting. I used a cable feather in the outer borders, wavy lines in the inner borders and all over, free hand, feathes and swirls in the body of the quilt. I used Soft & Bright batting and Signature 100% cotton machine quilting thread in the color Linen.

Here is the other corner of this quilt. I LOVE the texture of the quilting!

And, of course, you got to see the back of the quilt!

My sister gave the quilt to her friend and her friend LOVED IT!!!!

Stay healthy, keep busy, keep quilting!!!

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Washington State Quilt

I have been working on some amazing quilts lately, and this is one of them! This was a Block of the Month Quilt from a few years ago, from a local quilt shop which has recently closed. The quilt highlights all that is wonderful in Washington State! The piecer did an amazing job!

Click on any photo for a larger view.

The quilt is 62 x 72 inches and the batting is Warm & Natural. I used a variety of high sheen polyester threads in the quilting. I kept the quilting fairly simple and just added details to the piecing. The piecer wanted something “special” in the sashings and requested small circles. Which I did using a 1 inch diameter circle template. (For details on this template Click Here)

Here are some close ups of some of the blocks.

Washington State panel with pine trees on the side.

Mariner’s Compass (Mariner’s Baseball) and apples.

Washington State Ferry and more pine trees.

Mountains and farm lands.

Umbrella, (which real Washintonians don’t use!), more trees, and of course, COFFEE!!!!

And here are some photos of the back of the quilt. The backing was a light yellow solid cotton fabric. You can REALLY see all the quilting!

Quilt back, towards the bottom of the quilt

This quilt was fun to work on, but it did take a lot of my time to do it! The piecer was thrilled with the finished quilt and is going to hang it in her front room!

 

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Last Minute Quilted Gifts

I am hoping that as we approach the Christmas holiday, that you are calm, relaxed, and everything is under control.

If you are anything like me, that is all a dream and I am in almost panic mode because there is still way too MANY things to do!!

Do you have some orphan quilt blocks or other quilted fabric laying around? If so, you are half way done with making the gifts I have listed below

Click on any photo for a larger view

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Practically Painless Pillows – Who doesn’t love pillows? And, if you have some orphan quilt blocks, half of your work is done! You don’t even have to quilt the blocks! I have figured out how to make perfect pillows, every time, including an easy way to put a zipper in the back of the pillow!

For Pillows Class details Click Here

 

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Table Runners are always a great gift! Above is one I made a few years ago for my sister. She LOVES it!! I quilted this one with free hand feathers, but you can quilt ANY design you want!

For instructions on how to make this table runner Click Here

For instructions on how to make the same table runner, but quilted with Feathered Hearts Click Here

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Cup Cozies are another great gift idea. If you have some already quilted fabric – maybe from some practice pieces – you can make these Cup Cozies in a snap!!

Also included is a recipe for home made Peppermint Mocha!

For details Click Here

 

 

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One last quick gift!

Mug Rugs are great gifts for the coffee or tea drinker! You can make a TON of these really quickly.

I used free hand feathered hearts, but you can do any kind of quilt design. Or, if you have quilted fabric – maybe left over from the cup cozies above – you can make these!

For an even quicker finish, use a pinking shear and cut around the edges of the mug rug instead of binding them!

For step by step instructions on how to make the Mug Rugs Click Here

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I hope these last minute gift ideas will help you in your last minute holiday preparations!

PS – I still have to put the binding on a couple of quilts!

MERRY CHRISTMAS and a HAPPY NEW YEAR to you and your family!

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9 Patch Plus

It has been a while since I have posted, but I have been keeping busy, busy, busy! It is hard to believe that November is right around the corner!!

I finished this quilt for Chris W and it is looking great! I went with a little different style of quilting, sort of modern-ish.

Here is the full view of the quilt – I love this pattern!!! Simple but yet so elegant!
click on any photo for a larger view.

It took me a while to figure out the quilting, but it was worth the wait. Here is a close up of the quilting –

The quilting was done all free hand! NO rulers were used!! The lines are about 1/4 inch -ish apart, using Madeira high sheen polyester thread. There is no quilting in the 9 patches and only a bit of quilting in the center of the Plus block. I used Warm Co, Soft & Bright batting.

Here is a photo of the back of the quilt. I love the texture and you can really see it. Some people call this style of quilting “match stick” quilting.

This was a fun quilt to work on! It did take a little extra time due to the density of the quilting, but it was well worth the effort!

I have more photos of other quilts I have been working on and hope to post them in the next few days.

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